Dumitru Mazilu

In November 2013, Dumitru Mazilu was interviewed in the General Prosecutor's Office as a further investigation of the events of 1989 in light of accusations surrounding Ion Iliescu. "We hope to find the truth," he commented. The following year, Mazilu testified against Iliescu, stating "I am certain now that revolutions are conceived by idealists, enacted by fighters and taken advantage of by opportunists". Due to his role in the revolution, Mazilu's comments have raised him criticism with some Iliescu supporters branding him a traitor in light of the recent charges against Iliescu and the revolution of 1989.

In December 2004 – the 15th anniversary of the revolution – there was a symbolic reconciliation between Dumitru Mazilu and Ion Iliescu, who with his cabinet had since adopted social democracy, thus quelling earlier ideological tensions between Mazilu and Iliescu. Dumitru Mazilu was introduced into the leadership of the Institute of the Romanian Revolution of December 1989. This institution is engaged in the study and study of the Romanian revolutionary process.

Presently, Mazilu holds a position as a Professor consultant at Bucharest University and the author of several books. In 2003, Mazilu was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize by the International Diplomatic Academy. The same year, he became a member of the Scientific Council of the United Nations for distance learning. In 2004, Ion Iliescu, who had apparently moved past their past differences, appointed him in the National College of the Institute of the Romanian Revolution.

In recognition of his contribution to the defense Of Human Rights during the years of the communist dictatorship in Romania, Dumitru Mazilu was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by the International Diplomatic Academy in 2003.

He is also a Member of the Central European Science and Art Academy (since 2000); Member of the Balkan Academy of Sciences (since May 2002); Member of the International Diplomatic Academy (since June 2002); associate Member of the European Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters (since July 2002).

In 1999 he was awarded the "Medaglia Pontificia" by The Vatican State, and in 2003 – at the "new Architecture of Peace" Congress – he was awarded The Title "Architecture of Peace". In 2002, he received the International order "Science – Education – Culture", a command degree, awarded by the European information Academy. In 2004 he received the National order "Star of Romania – in Knight degree".

Mazilu returned to diplomacy, becoming the head of Romania's diplomatic mission in the Philippines (1993 and 1994). Dumitru Mazilu was appointed as ambassador to the international organizations in Vienna, and later, Romania's representative to OSCE from 1994 to 1997. This saw another surge in Mazilu's diplomatic career. He held various positions of power including vice president of the United Nations Organization for the Development of Industry in 1995, vice president of the United Nations Commission for the peaceful uses of the cosmic space from 1995 to 1997, the chairman of the Working Group of the General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency from 1996 to 1997, vice president and president of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law from 1998 to 2000, member of the International Diplomatic Academy in 2002.

In March 1991, Dumitru Mazilu was attacked in Geneva during the devastation of political parties in Bucharest, the assaults of various journalists and leaders of the opposition, and the murder of Ioan Petru Culianu in Illinois. The murder was celebrated by the new union of the Romanian far-right and far-left; according to Vladimir Tismăneanu: "[Culianu] he gave the most devastating indictment of the new union of far left and far right in Romania". As speculation that former Securitate officers were behind the assaults of various journalists and opposition leaders and Ioan Petru Culianu's murder, Mazilu came to understand that the Romanian authorities were likely behind his assault and were attempting to keep him silent as a centre-left political dissident who was critical of both far-right and far-left world views.

Dumitru Mazilu has been awarded the titles of Doctor Honoris Causa of both Romanian and foreign educational institutions, namely: American College of Switzerland (1991); Police Academy "Alexandru Ioan Cuza" of Bucharest (September 2002); International University "Albert Schweitzer" of Geneva (November 2002); Honorary Member of the academic Community of the University "George Bacvia" in September 2003; Doctor of Constanta University of Constanta (April 2006).

After Dumitru Mazilu's failure to gain prominence as a leader in the National Salvation Front, the newspaper, Free Romania published a piece made up of information from Mazilu's political biography. The information in the piece was largely about his past under the regime of Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej. After being discredited from public opinion, Mazilu resigned from the leadership of the FSN on 26 January 1990, accusing the Communist practices within the political framework of the new political power of Stalinism.

After the revolution, Mazilu left for a time to Switzerland. In 1990, he was chosen as the chairman of the Romanian Institute for Human Rights and youth, reprising the duties of a role that he held previously toward the early days of his career. In the years 1991–1993, Mazilu won a lawsuit filed by the Romanian authorities regarding his improper firing from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs during the Ceaușescu regime. He obtained his previously held role which he had lost in 1986 at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

However, despite being under house arrest, Mazilu was able to publish a clandestine report to the Geneva in April 1989. The report was published by the United Nations in July of the same year. This report was similarly critical, stressing conditions of extreme hunger, cold and fear in Romania [4].

Despite repeated attempts by the UN to free Mazilu, he remained under house arrest. In September 1989, four diplomats from the embassy of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, the United States of America and Canada were prevented by the Securitate to visit Mazilu. Several radio stations including the BBC, Deutsche Welle and Radio France Internationale brought attention to the situation [5].

The United Nations eventually decided to take the situation to the International Court of Justice in the Hague. The subsequent hearing was held in October 1989 and in December 1989, Decision No 81/15 demanded that the Romanian authorities release Mazilu immediately and was voted upon unanimously, underling that Mazilu was to enjoy the diplomatic immunity of the United Nations as provided by Article 22 of the UN Convention on the privileges and immunities [6].

After his speech was broadcast on television, Dumitru Mazilu was appointed Vice President of the National Salvation Front, which took power after Ceaușescu's removal. The FSN proclamation read by Ion Iliescu on 22 December 1989 was written by Dumitru Mazilu with some editing by Silviu Brucan. Despite this brief cooperation, tensions between Mazilu and Iliescu began as a result of the big tent ideology adopted by the FSN to present a united front against Nicolae Ceaușescu. Brucan and Iliescu believed that Communism should be kept in place, but Ceaușescu should be removed, whereas Mazilu believed that Communism was inherently flawed and was in need of replacement by Capitalism and Petre Roman believed that Socialism was Communism's natural replacement. These tensions culminated when during a march of remembrance for the fallen of the revolution on 12 January 1990, Mazilu attempted to use the dissatisfaction of the crowd to seize leadership of the FSN from Iliescu. His attempt, which included him jumping on top of a tank and shouting, "death to the former Securitate officers!" was largely unsuccessful apart from the removal of a few former Communist activists from the leadership of the FSN.

Dumitru Mazilu wrote a letter to the Secretary-General of the United Nations stating that he had been hospitalized twice, being forced to withdraw from a summit on 1 December 1987, stating that he would not withdraw his report. The next year, the UN Subcommission to request Mazilu's release. In response, Ceaușescu stated that Mazilu's detention was in accordance with Romanian law and that placing Mazilu on the diplomat list was redundant due to his illness, thus denying the requests of the UN.

From the years 1986–1989, Mazilu was placed under house arrest as a result of his criticisms of Ceaușescu's handling of human rights. As a result of Mazilu's critical report of Human Rights in Romania, he was formally fired from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1987 and his diplomatic passport was withdrawn, preventing him from attending UN meetings. In May of the same year, Ceaușescu had a letter written to the UN which claimed that Mazilu had suffered a heart attack and was seriously ill.

In 1985, Mazilu became involved in discussions of human rights and of the youth of the world. At this point in time, expectations that Mazilu wrote a report critical of the situation of human rights in Romania. Nicolae Ceaușescu was informed by secret services that Mazilu intended to publish the report. Ceaușescu forbade Mazilu to leave the country to prevent him from presenting the report to the United Nations Organization. The report detailed Ceaușescu's policy of exporting the majority of Romania's food, and lowering living standards to quickly pay off foreign debts. This was the case especially for those who lived near the construction site of Ceaușescu's planned palace who were forcefully placed into hastily constructed apartment blocks that lacked electricity and running water, when in contrast, Ceaușescu lived in extravagant wealth. Mazilu furthered criticized Ceaușescu's agricultural policy of destroying traditional farming centers in an effort to modernize Romania's farming industry with the introduction of more modern agricultural centers, claiming that this compromised peasant farmers as their farms were seen by Ceaușescu's administration as "breeding (grounds) of bourgeois liberalism that still (perpetuate) forms of private property".

Dumitru Mazilu received numerous awards for his scientific and legal activity: "Simion Barnuactions" award of the Romanian Academy (1973); "Media Peace Prize" (Geneva, 1980); "Hugo Grotius" Award (New York, 1984); "Andrei Rădulescu" Awards (1999) and "Vespasian Pella" (2002), awarded by The Jurists of Romania's Union Of Excellence, awarded by Radio in Bucharest, January 2004. Also, in December 2004, his work "Diplomacy. Diplomatic and consular law" was observed with the Jurists' Union's "Vespasian Pella" award in Romania.

In the 1970s, Mazilu's academic career further expanded. In 1970, he was established as a university professor by the Ministry of Education. In the years 1970–1974, he was the scientific director of the Institute of Political Sciences in Bucharest. In 1974, he gained admiration from American universities such as Harvard, Columbia and UCB. This attention from foreign institutes solidified Mazilu's position in Romanian diplomacy. This led to Mazilu's position as a legal adviser at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

From 1965 to 1966, Mazilu served as director of Securitate in Băneasa. According to the Report Armageddon VII of 2004, it is claimed that Dumitru Mazilu had been dismissed from the management of Securitate officers as a result of an attempt to falsify documents relating to a car accident. From 1965 to 1968, Mazilu was responsible for investigating abuses and irregularities committed during the regime of Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej.

Mazilu was born in Bacău. In 1952, he graduated from the Technical School of Engineers in Bacău. The same year, he became a security officer and was promoted to the rank of lieutenant. In 1959, Mazilu graduated from the University of Bucharest with a law degree, obtaining a PhD in the same field in 1964. As Mazilu attempted to obtain a PhD, he worked as a professor of law at Ștefan Gheorghiu Academy in Bucharest.

Dumitru Mazilu (born 24 June 1934) is a Romanian politician. He had a key role in the events of the Romanian Revolution of December 1989 and in exposing the human rights abuses of the Ceaușescu regime.